Mooyah Burgers & Fries opening at least 10 restaurants in Alabama

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- The burger business is about to get more competitive in Alabama.

A Frisco, Texas-based chain called Mooyah is planning to enter Alabama in a big way, opening at least 10 restaurants, mostly in the central part of the state.

The family of Denney Barrow, who previously owned Birmingham's Harbar Construction Co., has bought the franchise rights to the restaurant in Jefferson, Shelby, Tuscaloosa, Madison and Montgomery counties and is scouting locations.

Barrow and his sons Josh and Jordan will begin with a restaurant in the U.S. 280 corridor, likely followed by one near the Riverchase Galleria shopping mall, he said. A lease for the first location is expected to be signed within a month and the first of the restaurants opened in the spring.

"There is a shortage of better burgers in the Birmingham area," Barrow said. "We think the area is primed for 10 to 12 restaurants."

Also on his radar are locations in Trussville, near the University of Alabama at Birmingham and in Fultondale, Barrow said. He expects to have at least 10 restaurants open within several years.

A first-time restaurateur, Barrow said he and his sons spent months studying franchise possibilities after closing their residential contracting business during the sour economy.

The high-end burger segment was most appealing because it has been the fastest-growing restaurant segment for several years, and Mooyah delivers a quality product, he said.

"We did a lot of research before settling on Mooyah," Barrow said. "It tries to celebrate the idea of the burger and fries."

The family is financing the launch out of savings.

"It's just impossible to get a small business loan right now," he said.

Mooyah, which sold its first franchise in 2007, is a regular in the Fast Casual magazine "movers and shakers" rankings, including a No. 4 finish this year.

The chain now has 22 locations in Texas, plus one each in California, Connecticut and Tennessee. In addition to its Alabama plans, the company is in the process of opening five other new locations in Texas, Connecticut and Kansas.

Mooyah Chief Executive Alan Hixon told the trade journal Burger Business that he intended to take Mooyah national with both company-owned and franchised operations.

Hixon is the former president and chief operating officer at the Freebirds World Burrito chain, which has 63 stores in California, Texas and Oklahoma.